Tuesday, October 27, 2009

After finishing the cuffs on both socks, I simply couldn't put it down. I gave in to temptation and decided to try a heel flap. Not too bad. Once the heel flap was done, I figured I might as well try to turn the heel. All I had to go by were the printed instructions, so I didn't really expect that it would go smoothly. It did. I kept knitting and all that is left now is to graft the toe. I'll knit the second sock along with the class. There are still two sessions left, and I need something to do.

This week's attempt at basket weaving was successful, but only barely. This silly little thing fought me every step of the way. The handle is a single piece that goes all the way down & across the bottom-- the basket is woven around the handle, rather than having it simply inserted at the end. Following the shape of the handle as it flared out proved to be challenging for this novice basket weaver. I got it all under control just in time to have trouble with the lashing (the bit at the top that holds the rim in place). I'll probably end up re-doing it later, because I'm just not happy with it.

The good thing about this basket (now that it's finished) is that it is just the right size to stow a small stitching project. Right now, it's holding my current WIP-- a Mill Hill autumn-themed Buttons & Beads kit.

Monday, October 19, 2009

Jack is missing an eye, but at least he has one, along with a nose & mouth. This project has stalled a bit. I haven't worked much on him in the last 10 days or so. Other stuff keeps getting in the way. I have big plans to work on him this evening and still hope to finish it by Halloween.

One of last week's many distractions was a quilt show, held at a local plant nursery. I have never been to a quilt show before but thoroughly enjoyed this one. The quilts were absolutely gorgeous, and I was surprised how many were actually hand-quilted. One of these days, I'm going to take a quilting class. I learned to do it when I was a kid but could really use a refresher.

As lovely as the quilts were, the thing that really got me into trouble was the one small table occupied by someone from our local yarn shop. They had some yarns on display, along with a few sample items... including socks. I've wanted to learn to make socks for a while. And yes, you guessed it-- the shop offers a knitted sock class. I signed up immediately! It's a three-part course; the first session took place on Saturday.

The pattern is a simple rib knit and is knitted with sport weight yarn on #5 needles, so it works up fairly quickly. We started the first cuff and are supposed to knit the rest before the next session, on October 31, when we will do the heel flap. I finished the first cuff quickly and have nearly completed the 2nd one.

I don't know what I am going to do when I finish the second cuff. I'm torn between starting on the heel flap, or simply buying more yarn in another color and starting a second pair of socks.

There is also a new basket in my house. :) It actually took two sessions for me to complete this one. It has a "fancy" bottom, which I'll have to photograph later after I've removed the tomatoes. I'll be making the next basket this Thursday. I didn't attend last week's class, so I'm itching to get started on another one.

Monday, October 05, 2009

It was a hectic weekend, but I managed to put a do a few more stitches on Boo Jack. It's coming along pretty well considering that I rarely manage to stitch for very long in a stretch. I'm hoping to have this one ready to display before Halloween, but that might be a bit ambitious. The stitching will probably be completed in time, but the actual FINISHING may be another story.

And... a couple of gratuitous photos of our new baby. I took these pictures a day or so after finding him in the bushes. He's grown a bit since then, and his color is starting to change a bit.

Thursday, October 01, 2009

I didn't want this lovely exchange to get lost in my previous ramblings, so I thought I would give it a spot of its own. I received this from Liz, from an online stitching group that I've belonged to for ages. I just loved this little ornament, and the other goodies were terrific as well. I put the floss organizer to immediate use holding the silks for Prairie Garden. :)

Yesterday I took a break from working on Prairie Garden to start a stitch-along. A bunch of stitching friends are getting together in Columbus this week, but not all of us were able to go. Those of us who were left behind decided to do this little design as a SAL. The pattern is a freebie from Primitive Bettys called "Boo Jack." One of our members added a bit to the design so it will actually be "Boo... Hoo I'm not going to Columbus". Clever, huh? LOL